Mental state of Yolo Courthouse arson suspect questioned

Attorneys are questioning the mental state of the West Sacramento woman who attempted to set fire to the Yolo County Courthouse in April.

Janessa Rivers, 24, faces felony arson charges for setting fire to the Yolo County Courthouse the night of April 23. She also faces an enhancement on those charges, alleging "the arson was caused by use of a device designed to accelerate the fire," according to court documents. There is also a single vandalism charge against her.

Rivers sat in the jury box Monday morning as Public Defender Lisa Lance spoke with Yolo County Superior Court Judge David Rosenberg regarding Rivers' mental state. The pair were joined by Alvina Tzang, prosector for the case, in their discussion.

In June, Lance questioned Rivers' competency to stand trial, and asked for a psychological evaluation of her client.

At Monday's hearing, Rosenberg said one of the two evaluations came back, finding River "incompetent" to stand trial.

The second evaluation, assigned to Alta Regional Center in Woodland, is still pending. Officials from Alta Regional told Rosenberg they have until Oct. 29 to complete the evaluation of Rivers' developmental disability.

"I see no reason why the evaluation should take more than 60 days," Rosenberg said. "They should be able to do it as soon as possible."

Delaying judgment on the competency issue, Rosenberg said he would send Alta Regional a letter to "light a fire under them" to get the evaluation done. He scheduled another hearing at 8:30 a.m. on Aug. 8 in Department 4 to discuss Rivers' mental state further.

"I suspect the primary issue is the developmental disability," he said.

Lance, who agreed with Rosenberg, asked that Rivers be released from custody. She suggested her client be supervised, with an ankle bracelet to monitor her location.

"Janessa has never been in custody before," she said. "Her condition has been declining rapidly since she has been in custody." Lance pointed out Rivers' parents in the audience, who nodded in agreement.

Rosenberg said he was "equally concerned," but wanted to wait for the evaluation to rule on Rivers' release.

Rivers turned herself in to the Yolo County Sheriff's Department on April 23, night of the incident.

After participating in an interview with detectives, she was arrested for arson and vandalism and booked into the Yolo County Jail. She is accused of setting fires at all four courthouse entrances.

The fires caused minor damage to the entry doors and it was not until court personnel arrived the next morning that the damage was noticed. The courthouse was closed until 10 a.m. while detectives and court administrators secured the building and investigated the damage.

The front entrance of the courthouse was blocked off with caution tape the following morning, several bailiffs indicating that someone tried to set the courthouse on fire and they were "airing out the building."

The courthouse reopened to the public and court staff at 10 a.m. that morning, although the interior still smelled of smoke.

Fire Department officials were unable to comment on the fire because they were not called to respond.